Seeing Xiao Dingyu down his drink in one gulp, Xiao Bolin raised his glass, his hand trembling slightly, and returned the favor. The spicy liquor slid down his throat, making Xiao Bolin's eyes redden.
Xiao Bolin knew he couldn't persuade his nephew to come back, and the old man would never find his lost grandson in his lifetime. Perhaps people always have to bear the consequences of their mistakes.
The two ate and drank quite a bit of wine, but neither spoke of the past. They talked about recent events or their children, their conversation seemingly transporting them back to Xiao Dingyu's childhood and Xiao Bolin's youth.
After dinner, Xiao Dingyu took Xiao Bolin back to his home. Li Mei went home from work to cook but didn't see Xiao Dingyu return. She assumed he was busy at the factory and had left some food for her. She and Xiao Yu ate dinner together.
Xiao Dingyu returned, but he reeked of alcohol, followed by a strange man who also reeked of alcohol. Li Mei panicked; she rarely saw Xiao Dingyu so drunk. Now he had brought a man she had never seen before home.
"Dingyu, why are you so drunk? Did something happen?" Li Mei went over and helped Xiao Dingyu to the sofa.
Li Mei looked at Xiao Bolin with some embarrassment, unsure how to address him. Xiao Bolin noticed her awkwardness and said with a smile, "My name is Xiao Bolin, I'm Xiao Dingyu's uncle. Nephew's wife, you can just call me Uncle."
Li Mei was a little confused. She had been married to Xiao Dingyu for more than 20 years and had never heard him mention that he had a younger brother or anything like that. She knew that he had an uncle named Wei Minglun.
Xiao Dingyu grasped Li Mei's hand. "Wife, he... he's my brother-in-law. We haven't seen each other for a long time, almost thirty years! I'll explain everything to you later."
Li Mei reacted quickly, realizing this wasn't the time to pursue the matter. She readily called Xiao Bolin "Uncle." Xiao Bolin also quickly responded, accepting Li Mei's address as "Uncle."
"Where's Xiaoyu? Where did he go?" Xiao Dingyu was so dizzy that his vision was blurry. But he wasn't completely drunk yet, and he still remembered that his son was at home.
Looking at Xiao Dingyu, whose face was flushed and who was slurring his words, Li Mei felt a headache coming on. Only she knew how clingy Xiao Dingyu was when he was drunk.
Li Mei ignored Xiao Dingyu and looked at Xiao Bolin. "Uncle, Xiaoyu had dinner and his cousin came to pick him up to go to his grandmother's house. He won't be back tonight and will stay at his grandmother's house. Dingyu is probably drunk; he doesn't drink often. You can stay in Xiaoyu's room tonight! I'll go tidy up the room first. You can sit in the living room for a while."
There was another empty room in the house, which was Xiao Xue's private room. Li Mei and Xiao Dingyu believed that even though their daughter was married, the room still belonged to her. Their daughter was married, but this would always be her home. Li Mei also didn't want a man living in Xiao Xue's room, so she arranged for Xiao Bolin to stay in Xiao Yu's room.
Li Mei put the sheets and blankets back on the bed, and temporarily put away the sheets and blankets that Xiao Yu had been sleeping on. After showing Xiao Bolin where the household items were, Li Mei took the dazed Xiao Dingyu back to his room, worried that he would embarrass himself if they didn't go back to his room soon.
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